True Power
by dottydisney
Summary: A rewrite of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty. But there's a twist - they're all connected.


**a/n: Hey guys! So, if you read my other stories you may remember a poll I put out deciding what story I should write next. Well, the most popular idea was a rewrite of three disney films, so here it is! The premise of this story is writing Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty into one story, so they all link together and become parts of a greater whole. I've been having fun planning and writing this, so I hope you enjoy reading it!**

 **Like my other stories, this will be updated every two weeks.**

* * *

A lowly merchant placed his wares in his cart. Nothing special, just the same old apples that he had been selling every day for the past ten years. One would think that a quiet, peaceful town would be perfect for a simple man to sell his apples – but in reality, it was quite the opposite.

Every morning of every day they would come – the witches. He wasn't the only one they terrorised, no, _everyone_ got their fair share of disruption from the little wretches.

There were two of them, with a third rumoured to wait in the woods. They were young, healthy, and able. A bit too able if you asked him. They could also be rather pretty when they weren't scowling and spouting threats. He only wondered what would become of them if they did more than just steal their wares.

* * *

A girl waited in the shadows, a small green flame flickering in her hand. She glanced over to her sister on the other side of the alley, who also held an emerald flame. Occasionally they would peer out into the market square, watching the vendors set up shop.

The time was right. Hiding their blazes in the long sleeves of their robes, they crept into the square. No one had noticed them yet, but soon they would. She went to the fruit stall, waiting behind an unwitting vendor. Her sister stood behind the meat vendor.

When people started staring and whispering, they knew it was time to act. Without hesitation, they withdrew their fires and launched them at the stalls they stalked. The vendors cried out in shock as the sisters dashed madly to the stalls before they turned to cinders, grabbing what they could before the vendors started fighting back. She had never understood why the vendors were still surprised. They knew their thieving routine like the back of their hand – shouldn't they?

Fruit and meat stored safely in their sacks, the sisters reunited beside the fountain in the middle of the square. People still cowered from them – how stupid they were. Her sister gave her a look which could only mean mischief, and she returned it. After agreeing on what to do with a silent nod, she started to turn from humanoid to equine, a trick she hadn't played in a long time.

The villagers screamed – good. Her image of a horse was a demonic one, pitch black with burning, lime coloured eyes. Her sister retrieved her dropped sack and leaped onto her, starting to cackle madly.

They screeched as she galloped out of town, running straight through the jewelry stall for good measure. As they reached the outskirts, her sister dismounted and she returned to humanoid form. Panting from her sprint, she smiled as her sister handed her sack back to her.

"I haven't done that in a long time," she said gladly, stretching and readjusting to humanoid muscles.

"Maybe you should try something different tomorrow?" her sister suggested, but she refused.

"The horse is the only form I've been practicing."

After she caught her breath, they continued down the beaten path, ready to share the spoils with their dutiful, youngest sister.

* * *

The cupboard opened. There was nothing in it. Amalie frowned. The cupboard closed.

Maleficent and Grimhilde would be disappointed if she hadn't made them breakfast for after their shopping trip. Amalie couldn't understand it – she could've sworn there was plenty left over from last night. Maybe they had rats? Or even worse, they could've been robbed in the night. She shuddered to think.

The door banged open, and the voice of Grimhilde called out. Preparing herself to give the bad news, Amalie trudged out to the foyer. When she arrived, Grimhilde was dumping her full sack on the floor, and Maleficent had only just come in the door.

"Good morning," Amalie greeted them. They always went out shopping before she woke up. They always said it was to get to the good stuff before anyone else did.

"Good morning, Amalie," Grimhilde said with a smile.

Maleficent handed Amalie her sack. "What have you made us, dear?"

As the eldest of the three, Maleficent had taken up the role of mother to her two youngest sisters. Amalie always felt that because she was the youngest she wouldn't be able to do anything without Maleficent's permission. She envied Grimhilde – she didn't have to be responsible. She had freedom.

Amalie took a deep breath. "There wasn't any food left. So I haven't made you anything."

Maleficent took a moment to register what she'd just been told. Then, with a sigh, she gestured to the sack. "Well, make do with that then." She left the conversation to ascend the stairs, then disappeared down the landing.

Amalie peered into the sack and saw nothing but meat. She looked over to Grimhilde. "Just this today?"

The middle sister reached into her sack, withdrawing an apple. She chucked it into the meat sack, and it landed perfectly. "No. That too."

They shared a smile, then went their separate ways.

* * *

Night had fallen on their cottage. Though it appeared derelict and ruined from the outside, it was the picture of comfort and cosiness on the inside. Maleficent kept the exterior that way using a spell, insisting it was for their own good. Sometimes Amalie wished she could live in a lovely mansion with a beautiful garden, rather than a lovely cottage with a beyond repair garden. But she supposed it was alright – after all, it was a safety precaution.

The three girls sat quietly in the sitting room, amusing themselves before turning in for the night. Maleficent reading a novel, Grimhilde mending one of her dresses, and Amalie trying to figure out what she could possibly make for breakfast.

A crackling fire was the only sound in the room, save for the occasional flipping of pages and a grunt when Grimhilde pricked herself. A question had been pressing on Amalie for a while now, and she felt that the moment of calm would be a good time to spring it.

"Maleficent?" she called, and the eldest girl lifted her head from the paper.

"Yes?"

"Could I, perhaps, come shopping with you tomorrow?" she asked.

Almost as soon as she'd asked, Maleficent shot her down. "It's out of the question."

Damn. She should've seen that coming.

"Why not?" she pressed the matter. "You said I can go when I'm sixteen. Well, I'm nearly sixteen now. It won't kill me to go earlier."

"Nearly sixteen is very different to being sixteen. I said no."

The silence resumed. Amalie opened her mouth to continue the argument, but a warning look from Grimhilde told her better. Once Maleficent was engrossed in her book once more, she noticed Grimhilde beckoning her into the foyer. The two girls stood and left, drawing some attention from Maleficent.

"We're going to bed early," Grimhilde told her, and Maleficent returned to her book.

Grimhilde lead Amalie to the landing.

"Why did we leave early?" Amalie whispered, assuming Grimhilde wanted their voices kept down.

"I need to explain a few things to you," Grimhilde told her in a tone that told Amalie that this was serious business.

"Oh?"

Grimhilde shot a quick glance down to the sitting room, then looked Amalie in the eye. "Even when you do turn sixteen, she'll never let you come with us."

Amalie's eyes widened. "Surely not!"

"Yes, now keep quiet," Grimhilde scolded her. Amalie hadn't realised she was being loud. "She knows you want to be a part of them. A part of the village. She's scared she's going to lose you."

Amalie wasn't sure what she was hearing. "But surely she should know I'd never leave you two. You're all I have, why would I leave that?"

Grimhilde shook her head. "I don't know." She gave Amalie a questioning look. "Don't go doing anything stupid just because I've told you this, alright?"

Amalie nodded, and Grimhilde did so in return, though hers seemed unsure. As Grimhilde went down the landing and vanished into her bedroom, Amalie was left with her brain whirring.

Did Maleficent not trust her enough? Of course, she would never leave them, that was silly. She would like to be part of the normal world, to be welcome into the village and have a home there. But for all she wished and wanted for something better, she was happy in the secluded cottage with her sisters. That was all she needed for the moment.

She decided that tomorrow would be the day to prove that.

* * *

Maleficent and Grimhilde awoke at the crack of dawn and started dressing for their shopping trip, unbeknownst to them that Amalie had awoken with them.

Already dressed, she waited by her bedroom door for the sound of them leaving. A few minutes later, the door softly locking shut alerted her to their departure. Opening her door, Amalie crept onto the landing and padded down the stairs. Checking through the window to see if her sisters had gone, she pushed the door open as quietly as she could.

Amalie could hear their chattering down the path, so she moved as slowly and as quietly as she could. A short distance later they arrived in town, and she waited in a cluster of bushes as they disappeared down the path. She started stalking them down the path, growing confused as they ducked into alleyways and side streets. Why didn't they take the main roads? Surely that was quicker.

She came to a stop when they did, and she found it rather odd. They were positioned as if they were waiting for something, and she saw the strangest thing. They had their magic on.

As the green flames licked their fingers, and a sinking feeling came over her.

They weren't going shopping. They never had.

She watched in terror as the sisters she had looked up to for so long started to terrorise the villagers, attacking them with wild green blazes. What made her feel sick was the fact that they were cackling while villagers screamed and stalls burned to the ground.

She couldn't stand it. Amalie, lifting her skirts, sprinted to the town square and screamed: "STOP!"

The square came to an instant standstill. The fires crackled, the children cried, and her sisters stared at her in shock. Grimhildes shock was of the guilty variety, but Maleficent – she looked mad.

Fire still burning in her hand, she strutted towards Amalie, a scowl spread across her face. Soon they were face to face, Maleficent seething with rage.

"I thought I told you to stay home," she growled, the fire convulsing in her hand.

Amalie could feel tears welling up in her eyes. "How could you?"

"Go. Home." Maleficent looked as though she wanted Amalie to be the victim of her flames.

"All this time…" Amalie murmured, trying to find the words. "I thought you were going _shopping_."

"I said go home!" Maleficent yelled, the ember flaring to engulf her arm, and Amalie yelped and leaped back in fear.

"Why?" Amalie yelled back, "So I can just make you breakfast and act like I didn't just see you two ruining the lives of innocent people? How long has this been going on? Have you ever just been _shopping_? When were you planning on telling me?"

"Amalie." Grimhilde stepped forward. Her flame had died, and she looked genuinely guilty.

"Shut up!" Amalie yelled at her sister. "You two lied to me! You told me the villagers shunned us just because we were witches. But no. I think they hate us because you terrorise them and burn down all that they have!" With that, Amalie turned and fled, leaving her sisters behind.

Her feet thudded on the cobblestone path. As she ran, she wiped the tears from her eyes and sniffled. She couldn't believe it. What else had they lied about?

Instead of returning home, Amalie ran straight for the woods. She didn't want to see her sisters. Not now. The woods would hide her from them. She couldn't bear the thought of spending any more time with Grimhilde and Maleficent because the people she had once looked up to as heroes had turned into monsters.

No. They had been monsters the whole time.

* * *

When they returned home to an empty cottage, Maleficent wasn't surprised. Amalie would return in time, she just needed to be alone. Grimhilde, however, was less than level-headed.

"Oh God…" she murmured, leaning against the wall and sinking to the floor.

"What did you expect?" Maleficent asked, dropping her empty sack to the floor. Given the circumstances, they'd forgotten about getting food.

"We should've told her," Grimhilde said, shaking her head, "Then we could've avoided this."

"Oh do be quiet," Maleficent snapped.

Grimhilde looked up at her sister in disgust. "Are you even sorry? We just broke our sister's heart."

"It was going to happen someday." When a thought occurred to her, she turned to Grimhilde, suspicious. "What did you tell her last night?"

"What do you mean?"

"When you went to be earlier. I heard you taking."

Grimhilde flushed, and Maleficent's eyes narrowed. If she'd given Amalie the idea to go after them, then there would be hell to pay.

After an icy glare from Maleficent, Grimhilde gave in. "I told her that you'd never let her come with us. I suppose that made her curious."

"YOU IDIOT!" She slammed the wall with her hand, making Grimhilde jumped. "I spent my life trying to protect her, to give her a chance. If we didn't associate her with us, she would have the possibility of a normal life. Now you've gone and ruined it all!"

Grimhilde stood up to Maleficent's level, rage starting to boil inside of her. "You're contradicting yourself. You say you didn't take her with us because you want to give her a good life. But all I've seen you do is keep her as your servant! Better life… You want a better life for yourself, not her!"

"How dare you!" Maleficent retaliated, and before she knew it she'd raised a blazing hand to Grimhilde's face.

Grimhilde jumped back with a short shriek. Maleficent looked at her hand in horror. Even in the toughest of times, she would never hurt her sisters…

But that was just the thing. She already had hurt her sister.

Extinguishing her flame, she gave Grimhilde an apologetic look. "We need to find her."

Still stunned, Grimhilde gave a dazed nod.

* * *

When they found Amalie face down in the mud, panic shot through their hearts. Grimhilde sprinted to her little sister with Maleficent in tow.

"Amalie!" she cried, lifting her face out of the mud. Fortunately, she was still breathing. "She's alright, thank goodness."

Grimhilde looked up at Maleficent with a relieved smile, but it faltered when she saw her sister's eyes were glued to the ground below her. Wiping the mud off of her sister's face and propping her against the tree, Grimhilde stood to see what Maleficent was looking at.

It was a wooden box half buried in the dirt. Looking as though it had been there for years, it was covered in scratch marks from animals trying to get to its contents. Maleficent bent down to pick it up, using all her strength to dislodge it from the ground. When it was safely in her hands, she turned to Grimhilde. "You take Amalie. We need to get home before dark."

Nodding in agreement, Grimhilde hoisted her still sleeping sister into her arms. Sister and box in hands, the two witches trudged through the forest back home.

* * *

Amalie woke to the concerned face of Grimhilde looking over her. Her face brightened when she saw Amalie's eyes flutter open, and she called to Maleficent. When the eldest sister approached, the events of that morning came flooding back to her.

The fires, the people, Maleficent's rage, Grimhildes remorse, the betrayal…

She recoiled when Grimhilde tried to give her a sip of water. "Get away…"

Grimhilde frowned and rubbed the glass with her hands. Maleficent, however, got straight to the point.

"I understand what you saw this morning was a shock-"

"It was more than just a shock…" Amalie muttered.

Maleficent took a moment to breathe deeply, then she continued. "We were planning to tell you when you were sixteen. Not that you'd have taken it any better, but it certainly would have more tact. I'm sorry for what you saw, but you were going to find out sooner or later."

Amalie processed what she'd just heard, but her scowl didn't soften. "So I suppose you've been attacking those innocent villagers since you were sixteen."

"Earlier, but only after mother and father died," Maleficent explained. She stood up and crossed to the other side of the room, retrieving a box from the table. She brought it back and handed it to Amalie. "Speaking of mother and father, we thought you should see this."

Amalie looked over the box, and her eyes went wide when she saw what was carved into the top. _Géraud and Ida Mathieu_. The names of their parents.

"Wh… Where did you find this?" asked Amalie, turning the box over in her hands.

Their parents had passed away ten years ago when Amalie was five. Though her memories of them were few, they were fond, and she missed them every day.

"It was beside where we found you," Maleficent told her.

"Have you opened it?" Amalie asked, and was relieved when her sisters shook their heads. At least they weren't keeping this from her…

"We thought you should." Grimhilde took a seat on the sofa beside Amalie.

Taking another look at the box, Amalie slid her fingers underneath the lid and pushed it open. She was surprised her parents hadn't taken more care in locking it lest a stranger found it. Perhaps they had enchanted it?

Inside the box were three necklaces. Beautiful as they were, the gems at the end of the silver chain were dull and grey. Amalie supposed that age had dulled their shine, but she didn't think gems lost their colour over time.

She lifted the necklaces out of the box and held them out. "Do you suppose it's one each?" She handed one each to her sisters and kept the other to herself.

"I suppose." Grimhilde stroked the gem with her finger, then peered into the box to see if here was something else. Sure enough, there was. "Is that a note?"

Amalie fished a slightly brown piece of paper out of the box and unfolded it. It was a letter from their parents, written in their mother's loopy handwriting. She started to read it out.

 _Dearest daughters._

 _These necklaces will lead you to true power. Treat them well and be patient, they will show their secrets in time. There is one for each of you. We hope they never fall into your hands._

 _Love, your adoring mother and father._

The girls sat in silence as Amalie folded the letter again. Placing it back in the box, Amalie spoke. "Why do you suppose they didn't want us to find them?"

"Because they'd only let us if they died," Grimhilde said, choking up.

The quiet continued, and slowly the girls dispersed to go about their business. Amalie and Grimhilde departed with their necklaces, but Maleficent remained in the sitting room, eyes glued to the dull gemstone.

 _True power…_ What was it? How could they find it?

Whatever it was, Maleficent wanted it, and she was going to stop at nothing to find out.


End file.
